Readme: | Short: Amiga executable and data cruncher Uploader: bifat neoscientists org (bifat/tek) Type: util/pack Version: 0.66 Architecture: ppc-morphos URL: http://neoscientists.org/~bifat/binarydistillery/cranker/
Cranker by The Electronic Knights ---------------------------------------------------------------------
Cranker is an Amiga executable and data cruncher and decruncher.
Executables decrunch while loading and decrunching requires no additional memory. Cranker is by far the fastest way to run large executables from disk on old, unexpanded Amigas.
You can choose from different executable headers: plain/standard, minimal, with text progress or graphical progress display.
All source codes are included, including cruncher, executable and data decrunchers. You can specify a modified decruncher in the commandline and produce custom executables, for example showing a logo of your group, or run an OS-legal effect while loading.
As of version 0.51, only an Amiga executable of the cruncher is included. See download section for other platforms, and src/INSTALL on how to build Cranker yourself and using it on different platforms.
Rationale:
Large OCS demos (onefilers) often reserve most available memory in their executable sections. This is best practice and recommended.
Crunching them with most crunchers like Imploder or Powerpacker is not an option, because all crunched data plus all sections must fit into memory at the same time, so the demo will fail to run in the minimal configuration (typically 512k+512k).
Titanics cruncher was 30 years ahead of its time in that it includes a decruncher that loads from an overlay hunk, which requires no (or little) additional memory. Unfortunately the Titanics decruncher is very slow (it probably does not really load and decrunch at the same time, but alternates between loading and decrunching), and its crunch ratio is bad. Another issue found with Titanics is that if a program disables multitasking, the disk motor can keep spinning for the whole time it is running.
Cranker addresses all this, and more. It certainly does load and decrunch at the same time, it uses no additional memory, it has a solid crunch ratio, and it is blazingly fast. Since version 0.40 Cranker also addresses the disk motor issue.
Some benchmarks:
Rebels Retrodentro, crunched size: ---------------------------------- Original : 499768 Bytes Titanics : 236388 Bytes Cranker : 217548 Bytes Imploder : 213332 Bytes - does not work with 1mb Shrinkler: 179472 Bytes
Starting time, Kick 1.3: ---------------------------------- Cranker : 20s Imploder : 28s - does not work with 1mb Titanics : 35s Original : 41s Shrinkler: 87s
Starting time, Kick 2.04: ---------------------------------- Cranker : 14s Imploder : 24s - does not work with 1mb Original : 33s Titanics : 46s Shrinkler: 86s
Usage:
$ cranker -h argument template: -f FROM input file -o TO output file -mo MAXOVH/N max. overhead (else store hunk, or error) -q QUIET/S quiet operation Data options: -cd CDATA/S crunch raw data -dd DDATA/S decrunch raw data -eo ENCOVH/S encode overhead into first header byte Executable options: -m MERGE/S merge hunks (dangerous) -s STORE/S do not crunch, store all hunks -a APPEND/K userdata file to append to executable -t TEXT/K text line to display while loading -tf TEXTFILE/K text file to display while loading -p PICTURE/K IFF ILBM picture to show while loading -st SHOWTIME/N min. number of seconds to display picture -b BLACK/S black screen (same as '-d black') -d DECRANKER name of an internal decranker to use -ld LISTDEC/S list available internal decrankers -ed EXTDEC/K use external decranker from this file
A 'decranker' is an executable header with certain features. You can specify an internal decranker using the -d option:
default can show text progress can show text and shows progress minimal silent, read-ahead disabled cinema shows a progress bar on a black screen picture shows a picture while loading black black screen while loading
All decrankers are fully conformant to the operating system. The executables should run on all real Amigas, all OS versions and from all filesystems and devices.
About the decrankers 'cinema', 'picture', and 'black': These decrankers obscure the shell or Workbench with a screen until the executable exits. They make little sense if they are not used to run fullscreen applications, games or demos. Don't worry: This is a regular Intuition screen, and it will be opened after all memory for the program has been allocated, so if the system runs out of memory, the screen will not open, but the executable is started anyway.
About the 'picture' decranker: Supports IFF pictures with up to 32 colors, plus EHB and HAM. On v36 or later tries to enforce a PAL screen. Better do not use freaked-out image dimensions, it is recommended to stick with 320x256 (or less).
Regarding the APPEND option: This allows extra data to be added to the executable. Your program, when started, can load the extra data from e.g. BPTR filehandle = FindTask(NULL)->tc_UserData . This must be commented in in decranker.asm, it is not available by default.
Expect bugs and problems. In any case, keep your original binaries. Feedback is welcome.
Technical info:
Cranker does not allocate memory. All allocations are made by the OS loader. Hence it is decided right at the beginning if the executable fits into memory and will be loaded at all. It uses a combination of techniques, hunk overlay, asynchronous and buffered I/O, and in-place decrunching with one of the fastest decrunchers in existence. Relocs are packed into 1, 2, and 4 bytes entities.
Due to its complexity, the decrunch header is quite large, but the decrunch header and a few extra bytes to allow in-place decrunching are the only memory that adds to the required memory of the executable. It will be freed by the OS at exit, like all other sections.
So why is it tricky? Cranker operates on three data pointers at the same time, one for loading, one for reading crunched data, one for writing out the decrunched data. All three pointers wander forwards in a hunk's memory area and must not overrun each other: _______________________________________________________ hunk | | : : | | decrunched | crunched data : yet unloaded : | |_________________|__________________:________________:_| ^----> ^----> ^----> ^- overhead destptr srcptr loadptr
The crunched data is aligned towards the end of the hunk. The overhead (usually only a few bytes) gets calculated for the particular data and ensures that the destination pointer does not overrun the source pointer. Loading takes place in DOS packets, which are requested from the executable's file handler task. When a packet arrives, the load pointer is updated and the next packet requested. The decruncher starts immediately with the first packet, but it suspends waiting for the next packet if and when the source pointer catches up with the load pointer. Another complexity is imposed by the reloc tables, because after loading a hunk, for loading them efficiently, the loader has to switch from asynchronous to buffered I/O (with a small load buffer on the stack), and back to asynchronous for the next hunk.
At least when loading from floppy disk the construct should be I/O bound under all practical circumstances, even if asynchronoucy kicks in just a little.
Download:
http://neoscientists.org/~bifat/binarydistillery/cranker.lha Precompiled Linux, Windows, Mac OS X binaries: http://neoscientists.org/~bifat/binarydistillery/cranker/
Authors:
Coding by Bifat/TEK <bifat at neoscientists.org> LZO by Markus Franz Xaver Johannes Oberhumer
Changes:
Recompiled with vbcc; the executable bit now set in the resulting executable; also it's faster (20210913)
0.66 The picture option was pointless when starting an executable with a fast CPU from harddisk. Added SHOWTIME argument, the minimum number of seconds to display the picture. Default: 5. Flickers and glitches removed from the decrankers black, picture, and cinema.
0.64 Added 'picture' decranker (and -p option) for showing an IFF ILBM picture while loading. Added 'black' decranker (and -b option) that shows a black screen while loading. Added an 'append' option that allows to append a file of userdata to the executable (to be loaded from inside your program - see decranker.asm on how to obtain the filehandle). In case of an I/O error, the cinema decranker forgot to close the progress bar screen, corrected.
0.63 Errors were not reported when saving the crunched file, corrected. The crunched format has changed: Now an initial payload of up to 65535 bytes can be passed to hooks. This can be used with the new TEXTFILE option for displaying large texts (ANSI logos, etc.) - not just a single line of text. The NOFLASH option has been removed - if you want a decranker that pokes to the background color register, assemble one yourself. Major code cleanup; all decrankers are now built from the same source. Improved source code documentation on writing custom hooks.
0.60 This version can continue loading ahead. (Previous versions loaded ahead one readsize only.) This allows for faster loading, depending on the media, CPU and filesystem fragmentation. The decruncher has been reworked and is faster, too.
0.53 Now supports dreloc32 hunks, can now crunch vbcc executables. Reduced memory consumption for crunching. Major source code cleanup. Improved error messages, safe decrunching of defective data. Added cinema decranker. Added multiple inbuilt decrankers.
0.51 Partially uninitialized hunks are now supported. Debug and symbol hunks are now handled and stripped away. The merge option appears to be more stable now. Added -eo option to encode the overhead into the crunched data header. Suggested by Origo. The build procedure and sources have been cleaned up. The Linux, Windows, and Mac OS X binaries have been dropped from this package. See src/INSTALL on building them yourself.
0.42 The Amiga version now works on Kickstart 1.x and on 68000 CPUs, a FPU is no longer required. Requested by Sachy. Crunching fastmem hunks is now supported. Added an external example decrunch header.
0.40 When an executable was started that disabled multitasking, the disk motor could keep spinning while the executable was running. Corrected by synchronizing on an ACTION_FLUSH packet. Found the same issue with Titanics later, so this is another reason for using Cranker now.
0.31 Mac OS X version and Makefile included, supplied by Bonefish. Thanks!
0.3 Added options CDATA, DDATA, MAXOVH, MERGE, renamed EXTDECR to EXTHEAD. Removed former hardcoded limit of 64 bytes maximum overhead.
0.21 Fixed a bug in the decrunch header when a load error occurred
0.2 Added options for displaying text and to avoid poking to the bgcolor register. Incompressible hunks are being stored now. The source of the decrunch header is now included and a custom header can be specified in the command line. This way you can use Cranker as a loader system, show a progress bar, or disable crunching in the commandline and just exploit async I/O to show an effect while loading.
0.1 initial release
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